Uniform company fined $120K after employee struck in parking lot

A uniform rental and linen supply company in Toronto was fined $120,000 earlier this month, following a guilty plea in court.

Canadian Linen and Uniform Service Co. will also pay a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge, as required under the law, according to a court bulletin.

The fine stemmed from an incident on Oct. 30, 2018, in which a worker was struck by a company vehicle. The lighting in the area outside the Canadian Linen building was inadequate and insufficient to ensure the safety of workers in the area.

In the early morning hours, a Canadian Linen employee was walking through a parking lot behind 20 Atomic Avenue in Toronto toward a building next door, also operated by Canadian Linen.

While walking between two vehicles that appeared to be parked, one of the vehicles, a Linen Service vehicle, started to move toward the worker in a left turn, and struck the worker, resulting in injuries. The driver of the vehicle was also a Canadian Linen employee and was leaving the workplace to begin making deliveries.

The issue of inadequate lighting in the parking area in question had been raised by the workplace joint health and safety committee just prior to the incident.

Section 21 of Ontario Regulation 851/90 (the Industrial Establishments Regulation) requires that “where natural lighting is inadequate to ensure the safety of any worker, artificial lighting shall be provided and shadows and glare shall be reduced to a minimum.”